


Brine

by snokhachestvo (SheWalksInBeauty26)



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Angst with a Happy Ending, Arranged Marriage, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Dubious Consent, Dubious Consentacles, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Grumpy Ben Solo, MerMay, Needy Ben Solo, Pining, Rey Needs A Hug, Tentacle Sex, The Author Regrets Everything, The Author Regrets Nothing, betrothed from birth, dark secret, neglected rey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-24
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-03 08:33:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24348058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SheWalksInBeauty26/pseuds/snokhachestvo
Summary: Lady Rey Palpatine has come of age to complete the betrothal agreement decided upon when she was born.Her intended, Lord Solo, has kept to the fringes of society for many years.Two broken people find love in the backdrop of a sea castle.here there be tentacles, ye be warned.For Mermay 2020
Relationships: Chewbacca & Rey, Kylo Ren/Rey, Leia Organa/Han Solo, Luke Skywalker & Ben Solo, Maz Kanata & Rey, Rey & Ben Solo, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Sheev Palpatine & Rey
Comments: 22
Kudos: 183
Collections: Of Tails and Tentacles





	Brine

**Author's Note:**

> *throws arranged marriage tentacle nonsense into the void*
> 
> Have fun!
> 
> Thank you sOOoo much to my gracious betas for your input and assistance.
> 
> For Nic (NewerConstellations, fear_of_being_bitten) a true stand-up gal who has been a great fandom pal to me and so many others. Love you reylo mama. Hope you enjoy the trash fire.

****

**Chapter 1**

Rey stood on the cliff, wind and rain slashing against her cheek.

Her cloak billowed out behind her like the sails of a boat at sea.

They had stopped at a coaching inn to change horses, and Rey had taken the opportunity to get some fresh air.

She’d been tossed to and fro for hours, the carriage leaving her black and blue from the winding path it traversed. The horses’ feet sunk deep in the mud, pushed onward by the relentless pace the driver set.

Inhaling, Rey thought about how drastically her life had changed. This was the first time she’d breathed— or even had a chance to think—in hours.

Staring across the horizon, she closed her eyes at the memory of Grandfather’s thunderous expression.

The day had come, he said. She was to be wed to her betrothed. Fulfill her purpose.

Her betrothed.

Whispered about when she’d been an infant. An agreement decided behind closed doors, an undisclosed sum exchanging hands.

Her mysterious intended, sheltered from society.

The rumors, the gossip that followed him on the rare occasions that he chose to show his face.

Rey was no stranger to this kind of chatter, as much speculation regarding the circumstances of her birth had made her immune to such idle gossip.

She had learned to dismiss such barbs, remaining on the outskirts of polite society.

After all, those who wanted to get rid of her couldn’t scoff at the money her grandfather possessed— no matter how hard they tried.

No, they still deigned to invite her to social events, silly productions designed to show off the latest fashion and parade around in a way Rey found quite ridiculous.

When she was first introduced into society, Rey had graciously accepted these invitations. But she soon found herself despondent.

People did not know what to do with her. They whispered about her wealth, the obvious elegance in the way she comported herself.

They talked about her parentage, the shame of her mother, her grandfather’s prestige.

But most of all, they talked about Lord Solo.

Heir to the Duchy of Alderaan.

A man known for his cloistered nature.

A sickly child, sent to the ocean to convalesce.

He returned well, filled out, strong— even handsome, as ladies reported.

But something was wrong. Something was different.

Lord Solo had henceforth retreated almost out of society, performing his one duty of attending to the King’s ball once a year.

The recluse quit his castle in the wilds of the Seona countryside to attend in Chandrila.

Many gathered to catch a glimpse of him.

Rey had never laid eyes on the man, his being 15 years her senior, but she’d heard the tales.

Eyes like pure chestnut, glinting with something indescribably mysterious.

A broad chest which prompted tailors to design special shirts to accommodate him.

Hands that could span a lady’s entire waist, when he dared dance with them.

His was an undeniably commanding presence.

Rey shivered as a gust of wind knocked her from her reverie.

She trudged back towards the carriage, thoughts drifting towards Solo again.

And this man was to be her husband.

She would live in cloistered solitude, never to grace society again.

Though Rey no longer ached for the welcome of society’s fickle impulses, she still held a hollow place in her heart.

She yearned for belonging.

And now, she thought with a resigned sort of melancholy, she was destined to be her own companion.

She couldn’t imagine Lord Solo being anything of a warm bedfellow.

She blushed at this— the implications of her thoughts turning her mind in an untoward direction.

One had to make a marriage legal.

As the carriage climbed higher up into the wild mountains, Rey’s exhaustion got the best of her.

With heavy lids, she peered out the window. A particularly hard swerve right led to her cheek pressing against the cool pane.

Her eyes drifted shut.

Frantic rapping woke her.

“Miss, miss! We’ve arrived. I need to get the staff back to your grandfather’s estate, so Smith will help you along quickly before we go back. Your things aren’t much, we’ll take them inside for you.”

Rey’s disoriented mind struggled to keep track of his words.

“Oh. Yes, thank you, sir, I’ve been so tired I quite forgot myself.”

Williams, her driver, finally smiled back.

“We wish you good luck, Miss, truly.”

Rey noted, with a level of chagrin, the pain and fear flashing behind his eyes.

She was reminded once again of the cruel reality facing her.

But she’d never seen the point in arguing with the hand Fate dealt.

As Williams and Smith rushed to unload her baggage, Rey smoothed down her dress, collected her small traveling valise, and pulled her cloak tighter.

She opened the door, and due to the preoccupation of her attendants, she decided she might try exiting the carriage without help.

She was agile, young, and of adequate strength, after all.

She mustered her courage and jumped down from the carriage, landing in a pile of mud from the recent rain. It splashed onto her cloak and part of her frock.

The cold, wet mud clung to her and she felt the tiredness of the travel in her bones.

With difficulty she gathered her wits and began the climb up to the manor.

After a few steps she gave up trying to hold her skirts above the wet mud, and her hem quickly grew filthy.

 _Ah well_ , Rey thought. _If he expects a graceful lady, he’ll be sorely disappointed by the drowned rat he receives._

When she arrived at the door, Smith and Williams dropped her trunks with a loud _thunk!_ and gave little salutes of farewell.

“Goodbye, Miss Rey! Godspeed”

She could only offer a half-hearted smile.

Turning to the large brass door knocker, Rey breathed in before taking hold of it, the cold metal freezing to the touch.

After rapping gently on the door, she waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Finally, just as she was about to reach for the knocker to repeat her entreaty, the sound of muffled steps could be heard along the entryway.

After sliding back the lock, the door swung forward to reveal a very small woman wearing a lace cap and large, circular eyeglasses.

Rey blinked, unsure of how to begin.

“Well, you’ll be Miss Rey, sent to us from on high, I reckon.”

Before Rey had a chance to reply, the woman turned to a series of pulleys and began yanking one of them.

Moments later, a tall man with a thick beard emerged from a dark corridor. Kind eyes twinkled beneath a gruff-looking exterior.

“Maz?” He queried in a heavily accented voice.

The woman, Maz addressed him, “Go and get the lady’s baggage, Chewie.”

The giant man sauntered out into the fine mist of the evening, whistling as he went.

Maz turned to Rey.

“Have you eaten, my dear?”

Rey began to respond in the affirmative when her stomach growled loudly.

The truth was, she’d eaten an early supper at one of the previous stopping points but now felt her hunger pique again.

However, she hated, above all else, to be a bother to anyone.

Maz chuckled in a harsh burst as if the sound had been startled out of her.

“We have some stew warming on the fire for you, dear. Just hang up your coat and follow me.”

Rey untied her cloak’s strings and slid it from her body, careful to avoid its damp outer surface.

She hung it gingerly, wary of displacing anything.

Maz led her down the long corridor from which Chewie had emerged, to an open room where a large fire blazed. She bade Rey sit and warm herself.

“I’ll return with your bowl in a moment, dear. You just relax.”

Rey quickly placed her hands in front of the fire. They’d grown cold and clammy in the damp weather.

As she sat absorbing the warmth of the blaze, she began to feel the exhaustion take full effect.

These days of travel at breakneck pace had sapped her energy beyond measure.

Just then, Maz brought a bowl of stew, its aroma drifting to Rey’s nose from feet away.

“ _Oh_ , this looks delectable,” Rey gasped as Maz gave her the bowl.

“It’s venison. Caught by Chewie— I mean Charles— himself. He’s the great lunk you saw earlier.”

Rey smiled at the evidence of obvious camaraderie between the two.

“How long have you been working here, Maz?”

“Oh, I reckon before Master Solo was a babe. I knew his father and mother.”

Her eyes took on a far-off glint.

“Lovely folk, they were. It’s a cryin’ shame about _**‘im**_.”

Him. Lord Solo, the elusive.

Rey couldn’t help but notice the raw emotion in Maz’s voice but chose to ignore it for the sake of politeness.

To Rey’s chagrin, she was already beginning to scrape the bottom of the bowl. She always did have trouble eating slowly. In finishing school, she’d been taught to eat like a lady, but ladies never finished their meals.

Rey did not believe in the wasting of food.

Noticing her silence, Maz broke in.

“Would you like me to show you to your rooms, miss?”

“Oh yes, that would be lovely. I’m quite ready to sleep.”

“I’d reckon so. Come along.”

Taking the bowl from Rey’s hands, she stood.

Maz led her back down the hallway and to the main staircase at the front of the hall.

She gathered her skirts in one hand before ascending with shocking speed, as old as she was. 

Rey hesitated briefly before beginning to follow.

Maz paused on the landing to make sure her guest was still behind her.

The older woman noted with quiet concern the exhausted tread of Rey’s feet upon the carpet. _The child needs to rest._

She walked down the hall, Rey’s soft leather boots making a small thudding noise in the great, echoey chambers of the house.

Then she turned left and opened a set of double doors—Rey’s suite.

Rey let out a little gasp as she took in the grandeur of the room.

Even in Grandfather’s house, she had never seen such opulence.

A gilded bed frame surrounded the largest and most luxurious mattress she had ever seen. Six or seven feather pillows lined the bed, which was covered in a silk brocade coverlet and gleamed in the low light of the kerosene lamps.

Surveying the rest of the room, she found the accompanying furniture just as grand. A large bureau, an impressive fireplace, and a golden vanity with a chair made of gold, diamonds adorning it.

Too conscientious to note Rey’s gaping maw, Maz bade her goodnight.

“You should find everything you need already here, but don’t hesitate to ring for me or a maid.”

“Thank you, Maz. For everything.”

“You’re welcome dear.”

.

**Author's Note:**

> Heheehe. Let me know your thoughts.  
> I WILL. WOrk. ON my WIPS now....  
> I promise.  
> yell at me if I start another story.


End file.
